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Jeremiah Briscoe (QB, Sam Houston State) – 56

Briscoe won the Walter Payton award (FCS equivalent of the Heisman Trophy) after a record-breaking 2016 season, in which he threw for 4602 yards and an eye-watering 57 touchdowns. I was struck by his completion percentage of 62.6% , however, which, given these gaudy numbers, struck me as a little bit on the low side. Looking at the tape, you can see exactly why he put up the numbers he did. Briscoe is essentially a risk-taker; he frequently throws to covered receivers, trusting in their athleticism and ability. Much of the time, it pays off, as the Sam Houston players are often a lot more talented than their opponents. When he faces better competition, however, his accuracy becomes erratic. His best throws tend to be when he leads his receiver – he is very good at this. When he has to throw to a fixed spot, however, when a receiver has sat down in a zone, he is much less reliable – particularly when throwing to the middle of the field. In general, he looks far more comfortable throwing the ball outside the hash-marks. His arm is by no means elite but I think it’s just good enough to earn him a living in the NFL. He goes through progressions pretty well and I was impressed by his ability to look off defenders. He’s not a dynamic athlete but he’s quick and nimble enough to enable him to escape pressure. One area where he will definitely have to improve, though, is ball security – too often, relatively innocuous blows caused him to fumble the football. Briscoe has the size (6-2, 225) and the stats to get a look from NFL teams but I would see him more as a developmental prospect, whose NFL ceiling is probably as a back-up.